 The Autobiography of the Attaway-Sasser Family written by Charles Eugene Attaway  |
The Autobiography of the Attaway-Sasser Family written by Charles Eugene Attaway |
b: 06 Oct 1918 son of Charles W. & Nannie (Sasser) Attaway | |
Ellet & Nannie (Kelly) Attaway |
Eli & Mary (Tuttle) Sasser |
 Originally Written on October 1, 1981 |
"autobiograhy" of our family's ancestors, so I have set out on this project today, which is October 1st, 1981. It will not be completed in one sitting. This is 5 days prior to my 63rd birthday, and time has not improved my memory any at all. But, I will try to print out what I think is correct, to the best of my knowledge. There will, undoubtably, be errors, for many of the families were deceased before I was born. This forces me to work at this under a severe handicap, due to the fact tht I am the 4th from the youngest grandchild on the Sasser side and 5th from the youngest on the Attaway side. This is in relation to my grandparents on both sides, for before them, I know just about nothing. Therefore, a lot of the information that I print here will be from "hear say," which was told to me by my parents and other members of the family. The fact that my name is Attaway, I will start with the Attaway side, if for no better reason, for I can only discuss one side at a time if I get this to make any sense to whoever may read it. Then, at the end of this writing, I may add on a summary of my wife's family, whom I love very dearly, for the sake of my daughter, Paula Jean Attaway. I never knew anything of my Great-Grandfather Attaway, except I was told tht he was a Freight Hauler (likely with an ox team), between Dallas and Houston, Texas. The Attaway family were Texans. Whether he owned the freight line or simply worked for wages, I do not know. His name I never heard mentioned. But, he raised a family of at least four, there were likely more that I never heard of. One daughter, whose name I never heard, was said to be somewhere in Idaho. The other three were Ellet (my grandfather), Alfred, and another daughter, whose name I do not know, but was married to Jack Huffman. Great-Uncle Jack and Great-Aunt Whoever-she-was raised a large family. Uncle Jack had some children by former wife when they married. She possibly may have had some children by an earlier also, though I do not know this to be so. They also had some children that included Mentor Huffman, Lizzie Huffman-Hooten, and some others whom I never knew. However, I am acquainted with the following of his children: Walter Huffman, wife Louella (whom I never met). Their children was Ancel Huffman, Irma Huffman-Bond, and Alta Huffman-Findlay who was mother to a good sized family, whose oldest child was daughter Pattie Findlay. Alta's husband was Blanton Findlay (deceased as a young man). Alpha Huffman-Perry, married to Joe Perry, of Paoli, Oklahoma. They had a large family, that included, as I can best remember: Clayton-known as "Red" Perry, Ora, Jewel, Mabel, Mildred, Ruby, T.J., and J.R., also Jack and Marie, and possibly another one or two that I've forgotten about, for I've not had much contact with them in nearly 50 years. Saw Jewel Perry-Murphy and also her son, (?) Murphy, at a family reunion in Oklahoma in the summer of 1977. Also, saw Irma & Emmett Bond, of Walter Huffman's descendants (mentioned above), and also Minnie Bond, Emmett's sister who was later married to Walter Huffman (mentioned above). They had at least one son, Claude Huffman. Walter was married at least once more after that to a woman whom I met briefly, her name I do not know. Walter has been deceased for many years. He and my daddy, Charles Wesley Attaway, were great pals as youngsters (first cousins). Then there was Ada Huffman, the youngest daughter of the clan, still alive and doing well, as of this writing (even though today she is about 85). She was married to one Otis Childs. They had 4 children, Henry, Alvin, Lillie, and G.T. Childs. Otis and Ada separated in, or about 1930, divorced. She re-married Jim Fox. Jim was a retired "Texas Ranger." Jim was an expert carpenter and though maybe a bit "windy," I would still lose a week's sleep today to get to hear him relate those "Long Tall Texas Ranger Tales," that he would tell of his days along the Mexican Border, when he was a young man. He was old. He was kind. He was understanding. He was pathetic, for he was then about to the stage of life that I am now. Just one hellova nice guy. Ada's children each have a family of children and grandchildren. I will not attempt to go into them, for I've never known them. However, should any of you younger "whippersnappers" wish to pick up on this report about here as a starting point, I will gladly give you, for free, any help that I can. All you have to do is write to me at my present address: C.E. Attaway, ###, ###, ### ###. If I have moved, the mail will catch up with me. I wish to take at this point the time to discuss briefly, my grandfather's brother, Alfred. He came to our house for a visit in the mid-20s, once when I was a very small boy. He was then nearing, or over 80. A very mild natured, easy going, loveable old guy. He said tht he was an old time logger that pulled logs out of the woods for the sawmills. He drove an ox-team. He said that he would never whip his oxen, that he would simply talk to them, and that they would literally pull out every last gut they had, to do what he would ask of them. He had two daughters that resided somewhere in Eastern Oklahoma, near Spiro. Great-Uncle Alfred Attaway - though nearly 60 years has past since I've seen him, I have never forgotten him. Now, that is about the size of the "Old Line Attaways." Let's get on to some of the direct oldsters of my own line of descendants. Start with my Grandfather Ellet. In the foregoing statement, I had forgotten to mention tht Grandpa Attaway had one other sister, Cleive Clay's mother. Until now, I had totally forgotten this segment of the family. It was at Cleive's house that the old man Ellet committed suicide, in I believe 1931. After placing his hat neatly on the limb of a tree, put the barrell of an old rusty 38 behind his ear and gently squeezed the trigger. He was then 86 years old. It made a very small score where the bullet entered - but you should have seen where it came out of the top of his head. You could have dropped in a hen egg without crowding it a bit. My grandmother was Nannie Kelly. A large rawbone woman of pioneer vintage. That was Ellet's wife, the mother of my daddy. I once saw a picture of her daddy, Great-Grandfather Kelly. He was an unusually big man, a very raw-looking, grisley-looking sort of an old character. So far as I can remember, I only say my Grandmother once, when I was about 3 years old. She came to our house and stayed a day or two. She wasn't dressed exactly in a "today's" bikini. Her skirt covered her ankles and consumed (as a guess) at least 12 yards of cloth. Even though it has been 60 years, I can remember her sitting me on her lap and singing to me a song about an "Old Raccoon Sitting on a Rail," just as well as if it was yesterday. She died suddenly of a heart attack in Shawnee, Oklahoma in, I believe it was 1924. After "Ma" died, the old man went miserably berserk. Rambling from one of his children's home to another. Spending most of his time with son, Luther, due in most part, to the fact that Luther (Lute) had no children to worry him. He got married again to a woman of whom the only thing I know about her was that her name was Emma. They lived in Stratford, Oklahoma. They were together only a short time; whether they divorced or simply separated, I don't know. I only saw her once for a short time. She had just canned some fruit in glass jars, which was the most beautiful home-canned fruit I have ever seen. The old man continued to ramble until the day he blew his brains out at Cleive Clay's house, near Byars, Oklahoma. He and Grandmother are both buried, side-by-side, in the Byars, Oklahoma Cemetery. They had 6 children: Charles Wesley Attaway, the oldest (my daddy) Ada Attaway--Sasser Alice Attaway--Sasser Edwin Attaway--(Thomas Edwin) Luther John Henry Attaway Warren William Attaway Charles Wesley Attaway married my mother, Nannie Evelyn Sasser, in 1902, in Purcell, Oklahoma. To this union was born: Nora May Attaway September 13, 1903. Died a few hours past her 77th birthday, September 14, 1980. Roy John Attaway, born March 5, 1905. Lives on Hwy. #29, 1/2 mile just inside Stephens County, near Foster, Oklahoma. Been in this same location, same house since 1934 (47 years). Charles Eugene Attaway--that little old accident, ME --born October 6, 1918. I was one month and 5 days old when World War 1 ended. Drafted into the United States Army during World War 2 on March 13, 1943 to April 22, 1946. I came from Oklahoma to the West Coast in May of 1940. My mother died October 15, 1933. My dad, C.W., married again, in 1936, to Ida Smith. I married her granddaughter, Edna Louise Smith, April 8, 1941. We were divorced, July 24, 1944. I married Hazel Lorene Miller-Cox-Miller, July 26, 1948. To us was born Paula Jean Attaway, May 14, 1948, who has been an invalid since birth. I left Oklahoma, in May of 1940, to take up residence in California. Moved to Reno, Nevada, in February, 1965 (10 years) to 1975. Moved to Loyalton, California, in January of 1975. Wife, Hazel, died in a Reno hospital, February 21, 1977, and is buried in the Loyalton, California Cemetery. Daughter Paula and I moved to Stockton, California, in July of 1978, where we now reside as this is being written. Nora May Attaway married Lester Jackson Miller, I believe in 1921. They raised one adopted son, Bobby Ray Miller. His wife's name is Alice (last name not known). Their children includes Jerry, Evelyn, and one called Butch. Roy John Attaway married Audrey Jones, in I believe 1924. They are the parents of Irma Jean Attaway and Donald Douglas Attaway. Irma Jean Attaway-Conner, husband, William C. (Billy) Conner, parents of Lana Rae Conner, Billy Jr. Conner, Jeannie Conner, and twins, Faye and Kaye. Their married names is unknown to me. So is their children's names. Irma Jean was born in I think 1927 and Donald in 1929. Donald Douglas Attaway, wife Joan (last name unknown), parents of Terry Attaway and two daughters, Carolyn Attaway-Davis and Donna Attaway. I will discuss Ada and Alice Attaway in the Sasser section of this writing, since they both married Sassers. Thomas Edwin Attaway married a woman named Kleid (last name unknown). She had one son named Truman when she and T.E. were married, then their children was Lester and Everett Attaway. Luther John Henry Attaway married Rachel (Katy) Sasser. They had no children. Warren William Attaway married Beulah Gay. Their children was Russell, Ruby, Vernon, & Winona Attaway. This is the sum total of the descendants of my great-grandfather, as best I can remember them. There undoubtably are many others that I never knew anything of, like the off-spring of my grandfather's sisters. Cleive Clay, whose wife's name was Bessie, raised a large family; while I have met several of their children, I simply cannot remember them. However, one whose nickname was "Monk" sold me my first automobile, a Model "T" Ford, for $12.50. I believe it was in 1937. And in trying to get that thing started, I can swear tht I pushed it farther than I rode it. Now comes the SASSERS, the other side, from which I'm a descendant. |
continued from: "Now comes the SASSERS, the other side from which I'm a descendant." |
I have no knowledge of the Sasser family any farther back than my grandfather, my mother's daddy. I am told that he migrated from North Carolina into Kentucky when he was a youngster, taking residence near London, KY. Though I may be wrong, I believe his name was Eli Sasser (not to be confused with his son, Eli). I think that his wife's name was Margaret Tuttle, my grandmother. But that also may not be right. She died when my mother was a very small girl of something like 5 or 6 years old. To that union was borned 11 children. My mother was child #10. The oldest child was nearly grown when my mother was born, then me being the youngest of my mother's family, and born quite late in my mother's life, puts a span of many years between me and the older Sassers....Since Grandfather survived being caught in the line of fire of the old Hatfield-McCoy shoot-out feud without being hit with any stray lead, he went on to raise 11 children. (He didn't like television very well. Preferred making his own movies.) This family migrated into Oklahoma in the late 1880's and early 1900's from Kentucky, with the exception of two, Haley and Elizah, who to my knowledge never left Kentucky. John Henry returned to Kentucky after a short period of time, to remain the rest of his life. Who, or which one came to Oklahoma first, I do not know, but they came one following the other, over a period of several years, including Grandfather, who died in Oklahoma, and is I am told buried in the Red Oak School Community Cemetery. However, I went there in 1969 and searched for his grave, but could not locate it. This is almost due east of Noble, Oklahoma, about 20 miles, give or take a little, and about 2 miles from the place where I was borned. Grandfather Sasser was dead several years before I was born. Like Grandfather Attaway, Grandfather Sasser was quite old when he died, and had lived with his children, from one to the other during his last years, staying part of the time with my daddy and mother, which may have been the place that he resided at the time of his death, but I am not sure of that. The old fellow liked his whiskey, as most all Kentuckians do, and had a certain brand called "Hanor," or it may have been spelled "Haynor," which he preferred, so my daddy has told me, and that you could not fool him by giving him a different brand. He could taste the difference. That is something that few people can do. Even though I have been a bartender for 10 years, I can't. To me, whiskey comes in two flavors, "Bad & Worse." The...Sasser... Elizah Sasser was never married to my knowledge, had one son named Robert Henry (assumed Sasser), the son of one Thomas Hale (Old Rowdy)...Robert...was a veteran of World War 1. Disabled due to a gas attack in service. ... Elizabeth Sasser-Cobb...was widely known during her long and fruitful life. She lived for many years in the Red Oak School Community. Known to her children...as "Mammie," and as "Aunt Liz Cobb" to her other relatives and the many friends and acquaintances that she acquired along the path through life. Her passing at around age 90 was a generation mark, for she was the last surviving child of Grandfather Eli Sasser's children. Thus passed a Sasser generation. ... The Red Oak School Community was at one time a thriving place. It was then quite thickly settled with farmers and sharecroppers. It doesn't look like much today. The land has eroded with time and the houses that used to dot the countryside have been abandoned and removed by one means or another. Very few houses are there anymore. But it was to this site the Sasser and Attaway families settled, in the late 1880's and early 1900's. Which family arrived there first, I do not know, but I imagine it was most likely some of the older Sassers. The Attaways migrated up from Texas, stopping for a few years in Southern Oklahoma, near the little village of Reagan, near the town of Mill Creek. They then moved from there into the Red Oak School Community, in Cleveland County. Being boys and girls of near the same ages, romances began very shortly, which kept Cupid quite busy shooting his little arrows into the air, and before long, four children of each family married four children of the other family. So, continuing on with the Sasser family, they were: Joe Sasser married Ada Attaway ... Eli Sasser married Alice Attaway, who was the last survivor of the Attaway generation of Grandfather Ellet's children ... Nannie Evelyn Sasser married Charles Wesley Attaway. This is my parents, as described in the Attaway side of the family. Rachel Sasser (Katy) married Arthur Stanley, brother of Will Stanley, Mary Ann's husband; eight years later, married Luther John Henry Attaway. She never had any children... (Note: Gene forgot to include Robert Eli Sasser and James Sasser) The Miller Family -as related to my daughter- Paula Jean Attaway Her great-grandfather was Ira Miller. Died by suicide. Her grandfather was John Clemens Miller, married to Loia Lotshaw. Their children were: Clarence Bine, Ruth Ann, Hazel Lorene, Mildred (Ethel, I believe), Charles Vernon, and Mary Helen. All born and raised in Indiana, and are no relation to my sister's husband. Clarence married twice. First wife was named Jewel ? Last name not known. 2nd Ruth Jefferies. Ruth Ann married 1st Aurthur Nooe, 2nd Garland Fogleman, 3rd Charles Adams. Hazel Lorene married 1st Albert Cox, 2nd Charles Eugene Attaway (ME). Mildred Ethel married Wyman Lee Lawlis. Charles V. married twice. Wives unknown. Mary Helen married Landis Hoskins. Since this writing is primarily intended for the benefit of the Attaway and Sasser families, I will not attempt to list the Miller grandchildren. I met my wife, Hazel Lorene Miller-Cox in 1945 while I was in the Army and stationed at Ft. Harrison, Indiana (near Indianapolis). She was born at Cold Springs, Indiana, January 11, 1924. Her family brought her to Indianapolis when she was a baby, where she resided until the summer of 1947, when she came to California to join me near Weott, California, where I was employed by the Bear River Lumber Co. Following her divorce, we were married at Martinez, California. Our daughter, Paula Jean Attaway, was born in the Scotia Hospital, at Scotia, California. We lived at that time 8 miles west of Weott on Bull Creek. She died 30 years later at the Washoe General Hospital, in Reno, Nevada, following a stroke and heart failure. ~Footnote by a relative~ December, 1998 Paula was born very afflicted. She is still alive in a nursing home in Stockton, California. She is 52 years old. So, for the benefit for anyone who might be interested, this is the family history as best I know it. Written by: Charles Eugene Attaway October 1, 1981 |
